Connecting device for push rod of bed frame

ABSTRACT

A connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame is configured to connect a bedside drive rod and a bed-end drive rod of the bed frame. The connecting device contains: a fixing sheet, a coupling sheet, and at least one first locking element. The fixing sheet includes a first connection orifice fitted with the bedside drive rod or the bed-end drive rod, and at least one first lock orifice. The coupling sheet includes at least one second lock orifice and a joining portion. The at least one first locking element is inserted through the at least one first lock orifice of the fixing sheet and the at least one second lock orifice of the coupling sheet so as to connect the fixing sheet and the coupling sheet.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a connecting device for a bed frame, and more particularly to the connecting device for a push rod of the bed frame which is connected flexibly and is packed at a low package cost.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 7 , a conventional bed frame of a hospital bed contains a rectangular body 1, a bedside drive rod 2 and a bed-end drive rod 3 which are rotatably connected on the rectangular body 1, four support posts 4 and two abutting blocks 5 which are fixed on the bedside drive rod 2 and the bed-end drive rod 3, two positioning seats 6 welded on the rectangular body 1, two fixed coupling sheets 7 welded on the bedside drive rod 2 and the bed-end drive rod 3, and a linear push rod motor 8 defined among the two positioning seats 6 and the two fixed coupling sheets 7. Thereby, the conventional bed frame is applicable for manual-operated hospital bed, a semi-automatic operated hospital bed, and a full-automatic operated hospital bed. The movable transmission mechanisms of the manual-operated hospital bed, the semi-automatic operated hospital bed, and the full-automatic operated hospital bed contain a manual operated push rod, a linear push rod motor, and a double drive motor.

Thereby, the linear push rod motor 8 produces a linear pushing force to drive the two fixed coupling sheets 7 via a push rod 9 so that the bedside drive rod 2 or the bed-end drive rod 3 is pushed to rotate via the four support posts 4, thus producing an output torque to rotatably lift or descend the hospital bed.

The two fixed coupling sheets 7 are stamped in a fixed length so it is applicable for the linear push rod motor or the manual operated movable push rod, but it has a length of 140 mm, thus increasing a package size and cost. In addition, the two fixed coupling sheets 7 cannot operate when being used for the full-automatic hospital bed, thus having a large package size and high package cost.

The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame by which the fixing sheet and the coupling sheet are connected based on the using requirements and are detachable in a packing process so that a size of the bedside drive rod and the bed-end drive rod 30 is reduced, thus reducing package size and package cost and facilitating the packing process.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame by which is maintained easily by using the multiple first and second locking elements.

To obtain the above objective, a connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame provided by the present invention is configured to connect a bedside drive rod and a bed-end drive rod of the bed frame, and the bed frame includes a body and at least one movable transmission mechanism connected on the body, the at least one movable transmission mechanism includes the push rod, and an end of the push rod is movably connected on the connecting device. The connecting device contains: a fixing sheet, a coupling sheet, and at least one first locking element.

The fixing sheet includes a first connection orifice defined on an end of the fixing sheet and fitted with the bedside drive rod or the bed-end drive rod, and at least one first lock orifice away from the first connection orifice.

The coupling sheet includes at least one second lock orifice formed on a first end of the coupling sheet and corresponding to the at least one first lock orifice, and a joining portion formed on a second end of the coupling sheet and away from the at least one second lock orifice so as to connect with the push rod of the at least one movable transmission mechanism.

The at least one first locking element is inserted through the at least one first lock orifice of the fixing sheet and the at least one second lock orifice of the coupling sheet to connect the fixing sheet and the coupling sheet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the assembly of a connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the operation of a part of the connecting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the exploded components of a part of the connecting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is another perspective view showing the assembly of a part of the connecting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the assembly of a part of the connecting device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the assembly of a connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is perspective view of a conventional hospital bed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 , a connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame according to a first embodiment of the present invention is configured to connect a bedside drive rod 20 and a bed-end drive rod 30 of the bed frame 10, and the bed frame 10 includes a body 11 and at least one movable transmission mechanism 80 connected on the body 11. The at least one movable transmission mechanism 80 includes the push rod 81, and an end of the push rod 81 is movably connected on the connecting device 100. The at least one movable transmission mechanism 80 is a linear push rod motor (as shown in FIG. 1 ) or a manual lifting push rod, and the bed frame is applicable for a nursing bed, a furniture bed, and a hospital bed.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3 , the connecting device 100 includes a fixing sheet 40, a coupling sheet 50, and multiple first locking elements 60.

The fixing sheet 40 includes a first connection orifice 41 defined on an end thereof and fitted with the bedside drive rod 20 or the bed-end drive rod 30, at least one first lock orifice 42 away from the first connection orifice 41, and a second connection orifice 43 is adjacent the at least one first lock orifice 42 of the fixing sheet 40. The fixing sheet 40 is fitted on the bed-end drive rod 30 or the bedside drive rod 20 by ways of the first connection orifice 41 and is fixed in a welding manner. The fixing sheet 40 is formed in an arcuate water drop shape so as to avoid injuring user's hand(s).

In this embodiment, there are two first lock orifices 42 of the fixing sheet 20. The second connection orifice 43 defined between the two first lock orifices 42 of the fixing sheet 40.

The coupling sheet 50 including at least one second lock orifice 51 formed on a first end thereof and corresponding to the at least one first lock orifice 42, a joining portion 52 formed on a second end of the coupling sheet 50 and away from the at least one second lock orifice 51 so as to connect with the push rod 81 of the at least one movable transmission mechanism 80, wherein the joining portion 52 is an elongated hole so as to adjust an connection angle of the coupling sheet 50. The coupling sheet 50 is formed in an elongated arc shape so as to avoid injuring the user's hand, wherein a length of the coupling sheet 50 is more than a length of the fixing sheet 40.

The coupling sheet 50 includes a column 53 extending beside the at least one second lock orifice 51 and received in the second connection orifice 43, such that the coupling sheet 50 is connected with the fixing sheet 40. Thereafter, the multiple first locking elements 60 are connected with the coupling sheet 50 and the fixing sheet 40, thus connecting the coupling sheet 50, the fixing sheet 40, and the multiple first locking elements 60. A cross section of the column 53 and the second connection orifice 43 are circular, irregular, oval or polygonal, such as triangular, quadrangular, or hexagonal, thus connecting the column 53 with the second connection orifice 43 securely.

The length of the fixing sheet 40 is 80 mm, and the length of the coupling sheet 50 is 99.5 mm. To comply with different sizes of the push rod, the length of the coupling sheet 50 is 134.5 mm. Preferably, the length of the coupling sheet 50 is changeable based on different using requirements.

The connecting device 100 further comprises multiple washers 61 and multiple first screw nuts 62. In assembly, the multiple first locking elements 60 are inserted through the at least one first lock orifice 42 of the fixing sheet 40, the multiple washers 61 are fitted with the multiple first locking elements 60, and the multiple first locking elements 60 are screwed with the multiple first screw nuts 62 via the at least one second lock orifice 51, such that the multiple washers 61 enhance friction between the fixing sheet 40 and the coupling sheet 50, thus connecting the fixing sheet 40 and the coupling sheet 50 securely. Preferably, the column 53 and two first locking elements 60 are configured to avoid a sliding of the fixing sheet 40 and the coupling sheet 50.

The bed frame 10 includes two parallel posts 12, a bedside stem 13, and a bed-end stem 14 parallel to the bedside stem 13, wherein the two parallel posts 12, the bedside stem 13, and the bed-end stem 14 are connected to form the body 11.

The bedside drive rod 20 is connected on a front end of each of the two parallel posts 12. The bedside drive rod 20 includes an abutting block 21 and two support shanks 22 extending from two sides of the bedside drive rod 20. The bed-end drive rod 30 is connected with a middle section of each of the two parallel posts 12, and the bed-end drive rod 30 includes a contact protrusion 31 and two locking pillars 32 extending from two sides of the bed-end drive rod 30.

Referring to FIG. 4 , the connecting device further comprises two inverted U-shaped positioning seats 70, multiple second locking elements 74, and multiple second screw nuts 75. A respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70 includes a bottom fringe 71, two peripheral fences 72 extending outward from the bottom fringe 71, and multiple third lock orifices 73 defined on the bottom fringe 72. The bed-end stem 14 of the body 11 includes multiple passing orifices 141. The multiple second locking elements 74 are inserted through the multiple passing orifices 141 and the multiple third lock orifices 73 of the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70 to screw with the multiple second screw nuts 75, such that the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70 is locked on the bed-end stem 14. When the connecting device is applied for a semi-automatic hospital bed, two movable transmission mechanisms 80 are mounted between the joining portion 52 of the coupling sheet 50 and the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70. A size of multiple second locking elements 74 and multiple second screw nuts 75 corresponds to a size of the multiple first locking elements 60 and the multiple second screw nuts 62 to avoid connection error when connecting the multiple second locking elements 74 with the multiple second screw nuts 75 and connecting the first multiple locking elements 60 with the multiple first screw nuts 62.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5 , the bed-end stem 14 of the bed frame 10 includes two reinforcement members 15, wherein a cross section of the bed-end stem 14 is an inverted L-shaped post, and the two reinforcement members 15 are welded with two inner walls of the inverted L-shaped post and are adjacent to the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70. When the two movable transmission mechanisms 80 lift or descend, strength of the body 11 is enhanced by using the two reinforcement members 15 to avoid deformation of the bed-end stem 14 when a pushing force of the motor occurs excessively. Each of the two reinforcement members 15 is formed in a piece shape, is a protrusion or a hollow frame, wherein a profile of each reinforcement member 15 is triangular, quadrangular, or arcuate (not shown).

The hospital bed is manually operated, semi-automatically operated or automatically operated. When the hospital bed is manually operated or is semi-automatically operated, the coupling sheet 50 of the connecting device 100 is connected on the fixing sheet 40, and the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70 is fixed on the bedside stem 13, as illustrated in FIG. 1 , so as to drive the push rod 81 of the linear push rod motor to move, thus lifting or descending the hospital bed.

With reference to FIG. 6 , in a second embodiment, the connecting device is applicable for the full automatic hospital bed, and it is not essential to use the linear push rod motor and the manual push rod. The at least one movable transmission mechanism 80 is a double drive motor 90 mounted among two abutting blocks 21 of the bedside drive rod 20 and two contact protrusions 31 of the bed-end drive rod 30 to drive two support shanks 22 and two locking pillars 32 to lift or descend the full automatic hospital bed. Thereby, the coupling sheet 50 is not fixed on the fixing sheet 40, and the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70 is not connected on the bed frame 10, thus eliminating the coupling sheet 50, the multiple first locking elements 60, the multiple second locking elements 74, the multiple washers 61, the multiple first screw nuts 62, the multiple second screw nuts 75, and the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70 to save material and package costs.

Referring to FIGS. 1-3 , the connecting device is applicable for the semi-automatic hospital bed, the coupling sheet 50 is connected on the fixing sheet 40, and the column 53 and the two first locking elements 60 are configured to avoid the sliding of the fixing sheet 40 and the coupling sheet 50, thus enhancing secure connection, easy connection and removal. When the connecting device is applicable for the full automatic hospital bed, as shown in FIG. 6 , the coupling sheet 50 and the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat 70 are eliminated to save the material and fabrication costs.

The fixing sheet 40 and the coupling sheet 50 are connected based on the using requirements and are detachable in a packing process so that a size of the bedside drive rod 20 and the bed-end drive rod 30 is reduced, as illustrated in FIG. 2 , thus reducing package size and package cost and facilitating the packing process. Preferably, it is easy to maintain the connecting device by using the multiple first and second locking elements.

It is to be noted that the fixing sheet and the coupling sheet of the connecting device are applicable for the manual hospital bed, and the manual hospital bed contains a manual connection lever, such as a swing lever (not shown) to replace the linear push rod motor of FIG. 1 .

While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been set forth for the purpose of disclosure, modifications of the disclosed embodiments of the invention as well as other embodiments thereof may occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to cover all embodiments which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A connecting device for a push rod of a bed frame being configured to connect a bedside drive rod and a bed-end drive rod of the bed frame, and the bed frame including a body and at least one movable transmission mechanism connected on the body, the at least one movable transmission mechanism including the push rod, and an end of the push rod being movably connected on the connecting device, the connecting device comprising: a fixing sheet including a first connection orifice defined on an end of the fixing sheet and fitted with the bedside drive rod or the bed-end drive rod, and at least one first lock orifice away from the first connection orifice; a coupling sheet including at least one second lock orifice formed on a first end of the coupling sheet and corresponding to the at least one first lock orifice, and a joining portion formed on a second end of the coupling sheet and away from the at least one second lock orifice so as to connect with the push rod of the at least one movable transmission mechanism; and at least one first locking element inserted through the at least one first lock orifice of the fixing sheet and the at least one second lock orifice of the coupling sheet to connect the fixing sheet and the coupling sheet.
 2. The connecting device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fixing sheet further includes a second connection orifice is adjacent the at least one first lock orifice of the fixing sheet, and the coupling sheet includes a column extending beside the at least one second lock orifice and received in the second connection orifice, such that the coupling sheet is connected with the fixing sheet.
 3. The connecting device as claimed in claim 1 further comprising at least one inverted U-shaped positioning seat, multiple second locking elements, and multiple second screw nuts; wherein a respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat includes a bottom fringe, two peripheral fences extending outward from the bottom fringe, and multiple third lock orifices defined on the bottom fringe; a bed-end stem of the body includes multiple passing orifices, wherein the multiple second locking elements are inserted through the multiple passing orifices and the multiple third lock orifices of the respective inverted U-shaped positioning seat to screw with the multiple second screw nuts, such that the push rod of the at least one movable transmission mechanism is connected between the at least one inverted U-shaped positioning seat and the joining portion of the coupling sheet.
 4. The connecting device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a bed-end stem of the bed frame includes at least one reinforcement member.
 5. The connecting device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bedside drive rod includes an abutting block and two support shanks extending from two sides of the bedside drive rod; and the bed-end drive rod includes a contact protrusion and two locking pillars extending from two sides of the bed-end drive rod, wherein abutting block of the bedside drive rod corresponds to the contact protrusion of the bed-end drive rod.
 6. The connecting device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fixing sheet is formed in an arcuate water drop shape, the coupling sheet is formed in an elongated arc shape, and a length of the coupling sheet is more than a length of the fixing sheet. 